Vaccination nudges: A study of pre-booked COVID-19 vaccinations in Sweden
arXiv:2202.04931 · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115248
Abstract
A nudge changes people's actions without removing their options or altering their incentives. During the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, the Swedish Region of Uppsala sent letters with pre-booked appointments to inhabitants aged 16-17 instead of opening up manual appointment booking. Using regional and municipal vaccination data, we document a higher vaccine uptake among 16- to 17-year-olds in Uppsala compared to untreated control regions (constructed using the synthetic control method as well as neighboring municipalities). The results highlight pre-booked appointments as a strategy for increasing vaccination rates in populations with low perceived risk.
30 pages, 10 figures, 12 tables